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It was my first time visiting a place where the infrastructure was severely lacking; transportation, roads, electricity, water, and health care – nothing worked. Yet even in 2002, many people had cell phones. That is the first time I imaged a world where everyone would have access to mobile phones.

Since I had just finished building a technology company, I started to think about what else besides basic communications could be done with all these cell phones. That is when I realized in my lifetime it might be possible for everyone to have access to banking through his or her mobile phone. For people with limited or no access, this would be transformational. For the rest of us, it would just mean more convenience – and potentially lower cost banking.

In 2005, I went back to technology to build a mobile banking company. I was involved in launching next generation banking solutions in Africa, India, and even in the United States. At the same time, I saw how slowly traditional banks were embracing new models of banking, especially in the US.

In fact with the recent financial crisis, things slowed down even more. Sure we have new mobile interfaces from the banks – but the products are the same behind the scenes. If anything banking got worse with people having underwater mortgages and increased everyday bank fees.

During the last 5 years, I saw first-hand the struggles within the banks to support innovation. I have been in countless meetings with bankers all over the world. One thing I have heard over and over again is that when they let their hair down, the universal comment emerges: “We don’t know how to make money from small depositors.”

In addition, it was clear there was too much emphasis being put on protecting traditional revenue streams, not enough of disruptive innovation. Even when innovation received initial support, it was frequently bogged down with business constraints and internal organizational struggles.

When I retired from my mobile banking company in 2011, I felt unsettled about what was happening with banking, especially in the US. There is a lot of industry hype, but a alarming number of underserved and unhappy consumers. The big banks have especially lost their commitment to serving everyday people by providing affordable banking services that empower people’s life and work.

In the US, the number of Americans opting out of traditional banking is reaching new heights; 106 million Americans are cash preferred. Many of these Americans are hardworking women – many I wrote a book about what I thought needed to happen – especially given the financial crisis. Crisis’ forces change – which is painful, but it can also be good.

I want so much to inject a sense of urgency and a big vision for the banks as banks recover from the crisis; a vision of affordable banking for all and a reorientation of the banks to delighting their customers. This is a moment in time similar to the moment when Steve Jobs returned to Apple – a time of crisis that he turned into an effort to build a great foundation for the future.

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